The Gathering 2025

Fri 9 & Sat 10 May, Strathpeffer
Book Now

The Gathering is the bi-annual event for everyone involved or interested in rural touring. Connecting promoters from across the Highlands and Islands with performers, producers, funders and other creative professionals, it’s a welcoming space to network, build skills and showcase new work.

‘S e tachartas bliadhnail a th’ anns a’ Chruinneachadh, ‘s e a’ toirt còmhla luchd-brosnachaidh nan ealan bho air feadh na Gàidhealtachd agus nan Eilean, cuide ri cleasaichean, ceòladairean, riochdairean, luchd-maoineachaidh agus luchd-proifeiseanta eile bhon roinn chruthachail gus ar lìonradh a neartachadh, sgilean cudromach a thogail agus obair chruthachail ùr a thaisbeanadh.

This year’s event will be held at the beautiful Strathpeffer Pavilion. We’re working on a jam-packed programme of brilliant live performances, socialising, sharing and delicious food and drink. It’s going to be a good one! Come join us!

Fri 9 May

2pm: Registration + Networking

3-6pm: Showcases, Wee Turns + discussions

6-8pm: Networking Dinner + drinks in the bar

8pm-late: Live performance (public event)

10.30pm: Day 1 end (Bus to Inverness/Dingwall)

Sat 10 May

09.30am: Tea/coffee + welcome

10.15am-1.00pm: Showcases + discussions

1.00pm: Lunch

2-5pm: Showcases + Discussions

5pm – 6pm: Networking + Discussions (buses to Inverness/Dingwall)

6pm: Event ends


From bold theatre and contemporary dance to moving folk and joyful funk, this year’s line-up reflects the energy and diversity of performance across our network – with something to inspire everyone

Alys Williams
ChokKa
Deiseil Airson Dannsa
Freda O’Byrne
Haver Quartet
Lauren Collier
Moteh Parrott
Penny Chivas
Ruby Warblers
Solitude without Loneliness

Not a member?
The Gathering 2025 is a members only event but we’d love to see new members join us! By registering for The Gathering, you are committing to becoming a member of The Touring Network (annual memberships from £20).

Supporting rural arts
All ticket sales will contribute to the cost of the event. Any profits will go back into our funding pot and directly support live performance in the region.

Need support? We can help
We acknowledge cost could be a barrier to attending The Gathering, particularly for members travelling from the far reaches of our vast region. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if this is the case. All Corrie and Cairn members are eligible to apply to our Access Fund to help with travel, accommodation, caring responsibilities, income loss or disability needs. Contact office@thetouringnetwork.com to check eligibility before registering.

getting here
We encourage green travel to and from the event, as well as carbon footprint monitoring. We’ll be running a free bus service from Inverness/Dingwall to Strathpeffer and back both days. Please let us know if you’d like to use this when booking.

Traveline Scotland
Trainline

Interested in car share? Please use https://liftshare.com/mobilityways-app

Accommodation
Strathpeffer has a wide range of hotels, guest houses, cottages and Air BnB’s but please be aware accommodation is booking up quickly and can be scarce at this time of year. Plan ahead!

The Highland Hotel
The Retreat Hotel

Outside Strathpeffer:
Achilty Guest House (Contin)
Kiltearn Guest House (Evanton) –
Coul House Hotel (Contin) –

Dingwall:
Tulloch Castle Hotel

Inverness:
Holiday Inn Express
Premier Inn Inverness Centre

Visit Scotland
Tripadvisor
Booking.com

Strathpeffer Pavilion
We’re looking forward to welcoming you to this beautifully restored Victorian spa building, now a much-loved venue. We plan to make good use of the impressive stage and event spaces, as well as the grounds.

Find out more.

As a participant at the Gatherings, we’ve been able to build relationships with small and medium scale promotors across The Highlands, Hebrides and Northern Isles. These partnerships have lead to some ambitious projects and great audience response. It’s always great to work with a network that does what it should do, and does it really well!
Steve Cousins

Let's Circus

The Gathering… acted as a brilliant introduction to many of the promoters in the area and made follow up conversations with promoters much easier. The Touring Network were brilliant at establishing relationships with venues and promoters who were not at The Gathering and were on the phone throughout the process to offer advice. With their support, we were able to extend the tour to a greater number of rural venues, which would not have been possible without this additional support!
Kit Denison

Clod Ensemble

Thank you, and The Touring Network team, for a fabulous ‘Gathering’. We have come away with such a lot of helpful information to digest and then act upon, I’m now really excited and enthused about what we can do to further develop our arts programme … lots of plans! I would just like to let you know that we really appreciate the support we have from The Touring Network, in all its forms. So thanks all!
Lucy Walsh

Craignish Village Hall

Latest News

In partnership with

Findhorn Bay Festival

The Gathering 2018 will take place in the beautiful, creative town of Forres during the annual Findhorn Bay Festival.. Forres is one of Scotland’s oldest small towns situated near the stunning Moray coastline.

We are delighted that Gathering attendees will get to experience the festival on both the Thursday & Friday evenings, and we have handpicked a selection of shows to offer attendees as part of their ticket.

Tickets for each performance are limited, so attendees will have the opportunity to request their 1st, 2nd & 3rd choices for each evening when registering.

* programme elements are included in attendee ticket.

Visiting Forres

Transport

Newbold House is situated on the southern outskirts of Forres. Rafford Village Hall is just a 5 minutes drive further out of Forres from Newbold.
Forres is about 25 miles, 40 kilometres, east of Inverness, just off the A96 trunk road.  There are daily trains and bus connections from other UK cities to Inverness, and from Inverness to Forres. Plan your journey by train or bus.

The venues this year are spread out across the Findhorn Bay area, and most are accessible by public transport. However, due to the packed schedule for the Gathering and Findhorn Bay Festival, we are investigating coordinated transport options. If you are willing to assist by car sharing to from and during The Gathering, please indicate this on the registration form or get in touch to let us know.

Travel Bursaries

Travel bursaries of £60 each are available to promoter and performer members who require financial assistance to attend.

Accommodation

During the registration process, you will be given the option to request overnight accommodation – note this is limited, so we advise booking early. Details below:

Tullochwood Lodge

Limited accommodation is available for attendees at reduced rates – book this when you buy tickets. Venue website here.
£148 for a double/twin room x 2 nights, plus option to stay an extra night on Sat for FREE! (breakfast pack provided)
Why not make the most of the extra bed space and bring a partner/friend too? There’s plenty going on at the Findhorn Bay Festival to amuse them while you attend the Gathering!

Newbold House

For those on a tighter budget and happy to share a room, there are a few beds available – book this when you buy tickets. Venue website here
£50 for a single bed in a shared room x 2 nights (breakfast included).

Other Accommodation

Have you sorted your accomodation yet? See our recommendations here.

Cuan Mor Restaurant

The Rockfield Centre

The Touring Network (Highlands & Islands)
Supporting live performance across the Highlands & Islands as part of a central, celebrated and indispensable part of the cultural life of Scotland.
01463 231328
hello@thetouringnetwork.com
Supported By
© 2014 The Touring Network (Highlands & Islands). Company Registration Number: SC214546. Charity Number: SC030983. | Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions